Lacing apparatus



Jan. l2, 1954 J. c. MACY ETAL LACING APPARATUS 9 Sheets-Sheet 1 FiledMay 9. 1950 El y affams J Kuslv INVEN ORS James Mac mf ATT Jam 12, 1954J. c. MACY ETAL 2;665,652

LACING APPARATUS Filed May 9, 195o 9 sheets-sheet 2 lNvE l ToRs` JamesMacy BYJ'ames J.' Kuszv A OR Jan'. 12, 1954 J, c. MACY ETAL LACINGAPPARATUS 9 Sheets-Sheet 5 Filed May 9, 1950 may JKLLSLU lNvE JamesBYJ'ames f ATT Jan. 12, 1954 MACY ET'AL 2,665,652

LACING APPARATUS Filed May 9, 1950 9 Sheets-Sheet 4 AINVE T RS Jamesacq' YJ'ames f Kusiv B MIM f ,f C f ATTOR Ff l Jan. 12, 1954 J. c. MACYETAL 2,665,652

LACING APPARATUS Filed May 9, 1950 -9 Sheets-Sheet 5 Jamelvwciy -BYJamesJT Kusiv Jap. l2, 1954 v J. c. MACY E'rAl. 2,665,652

LACING APPARATUS Filed May 9, 1950 lNvE ORS James llacy. BYJamesJKwsI/vATTORN E Jan. 12,'1954 c, MACY ETAL 2,665,652

LACING APPARATUS Filed May 9, 195o `9 sheets-sheet 7 IHHHH Hl IIIHIHBYJameS .KHS-Lv ATTO NE Jan. 12, 1954 J. c. MACY ETAL 2,665,652

LACING APPARATUSY Filed May 9, 1950 9,Sheets-Sheet 8 "Skil-1h58 AxNvEJames .mcy

AT1-OR Jan. 12, 1954 J.' c. MACY ET'AL LACING APPARATUS 9 sheets-sheet 9Filed May 9, 195o mi@ im a a JJY B.

Patented Jan. 12, 1954 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE LACING APPARATUSApplication May 9, 1950, Serial No. 160,918

18 Claims. (Cl. 112-172) This invention relates to lacing and stitchingor sewing, and more in particular to a method and apparatus for lacing astrip of leather or other flexible ribbon-like material on to articles,for example, along the edges of flat objects such as leather brief casesor the like.

An object of this invention is to provide a method and apparatus forcarrying on a lacing operation automatically and substantiallycontinuously. A further object is to provide an improved mode ofthreading a flexible ribbon or thread-like member onto various articles.A further object is to perform a lacing or sewing operation in such amanner as to produce improved products of uniform high quality. Afurther object is to provide for the above with apparatus which issimple and sturdy in construction, inexpensive to manufacture andmaintain and operate, adaptable to varying conditions of operation andto various uses, and which is thoroughly practical from a commercialstandpoint and in other respects. A further object is to provide for theabove with apparatus which may be operated by unskilled persons andwhich may be used With fragile materials Without danger of damagethereto. These and other objects will be in part obvious and in partpointed out below.

The invention accordingly consists in the features of construction,combinations of elements, arrangements of parts and in the several stepsand relation and order of each of the same to one or more of the others,all as Will be illustratively described herein, and the scope of theapplication of which will be indicated in the following claims.

In the drawings:

Figure 1 is a perspective view of one embodiment of the invention;

Figure 2 is an enlarged top plan view of a portion of the machine ofFigure l;

Figure 3 is a side elevation from the left-hand side of Figure 2;

Figure 4 is an enlarged sectional view on the line ll--4 of Figure 3;

Figures 5 and 6 are fragmentary sectional views, respectively, on thelines 5 5 and E-S of Figure 4;

Figure 7 is an enlarged sectional view on the line 1 1 of Figure 3;

Figures 8 and 9 are sectional views, respectively, on the lines 8-8 and9--9 of Figure 7;

Figure l0 is a sectional view on the line IIJ-H) of Figure 6;

Figures ll, l2 and 13 are sectional views, respectively, on the linesll-I I, I2-l2 and lit-1 3 of Figure 3;

CIJ

Figure 14 is a sectional View on the line l4--l4 of Figure 6;

Figure 15 is a sectional View on the line I 5--I 5 of Figure 14;

Figure 16 is an enlarged fragmentary sectional view on the line l6|6 ofFigure 4;

Figure 17 is a perspective view of an article produced on the machinehere shown; and,

Figure 18 is a somewhat schematic view illustrating the manner ofoperation of a machine here shown.

In the past, various articles or products have been produced havingso-called laced edges or lacings which are decorative and may also actto hold parts together. These products have been of the handmade typewith the lac-ings being applied manually, and generally throughpreformed holes in the Work pieces. Thus, the quality of the productshas depended upon the skill of the workmen, and the products are oftenconsidered inferior in some respects because of faulty workmanship oreven because of a non-uniformity in the manner or style of Work. Thistype of hand operation has also become expensive because of the risingcosts in labor, and because of the tendency for Workmen to be divertedto other less-exacting occupations. Efforts have been made to performoperations of this character with machines but these efforts have beenlargely unsuccessful and have not met with real success. In accordancewith the present invention, lacing operations of this general characterare performed in a manner which is fully automatic and requires nomechanical skill on the part of the operator. At the same time theresulting products are of uniform high quality, and thus may be superiorin quality to those previously made by hand.

Referring particularly to Figure l of the drawings, a lacing head 2 isshown at the left and is operated through a variable speed drive unit 4by an electric motor 6, with the article or work piece being supportedon a stationary horizontal table 8. The work piece as here shown is abrief case I0 to the edges of which a Wound lacing l2 is being applied,and the work piece proper comprises two rectangular pieces of leatherhaving rounded corners laid face-to-face one upon the other. The edge ofthe Work piece is held against the surface of table 8 by a guide stripM' and (see Figure 2) a reinforcing sword-like guide I6 projects alongthe top of the Work piece through and beyond the Work zone where thelacing operation is taking place, and this guide IE supports 'andreinforces the loops of the lacing as they are tightened. When lacingsare being placed Y produce a hole I8.

upon the corners of the Work piece this guide I6 is withdrawn (seeFigure 9) by sliding it to the right from the full line to the brokenline position.

'ihe structure and operation of this machine may be understood best ifan explanation is first given as to the basic inode of operation and forthis purpose reference will now be made to Figure 18. In this figure,the work piece it is shown with its openings iii spaced much furtherfrom each other than they actually appear in practice, and the relativesizes are otherwise disproportionate. Referring to the right-handportion of the ngure, a helical steel needle 2c of rectangularcross-section and having a leading point 22 is of uniform helical pitchand diameter and extends one and one-half turns or 540 arcuately. Thetrailing end of the needle has an opening 24 through which extends aWire 25 which is attached to the leading end t of astrip of lacing 3G.

Lacing 3Q extends through four turns and its trailing end then formsloops or lacings and the extreme end has a knot 32 which rests Yupon thetop face of the Work piece. Thus, from'knot 32 the lacingprojects'downwardly through the lefthand hole #Sand thence extends inloops through successive holes to the right.

Needle 2! is shown with its leading end or'point 22v projecting toward azone 34 in thework piece where the needle will pierce the work piece andThe needle is also shown threaded through the next adjacent holes It.During operation needle 2d and the loops of lacing Se arerotatedclockwise when considered from the left-hand side of Figure 18,and during this rotation the trailing end of the rotating portion of thelacing is drawn through the successive holes I8. Thus, in Figure 18 theleft hand end of the lacings having the knot 32 therein isstationary andfrom this end a loop is formed `'which extends out of the left-hand holeI8 and also to the right and'up and around the adjacent edge of the workpiece and'thence through the next hole i8. The other lacing loops extendsimilarly to the right and around the edge of the-work piece to the tcpagain and down through-the next hole. An expanded loop of the lacing isshown between the next two openings and this expanded loop is beingreduce-d by virtue of the lacingbeing wound by the continued rotation ofthe remaining loops ofthe lacing at the right. This operation is'continued with a loop being 'tightened at the left during each rotationof the needle and the rotatingportion of the lacing.

Referring again to Figure 2 the speed control mechanism flhas a bevelgear t carriedby its power output shaft and meshing with a'bevel gear i2xed to a shaft et which is rotatably mounted in a pair of fixed bearingscil. Shaft c4 has keyed to it a pair of gears 48 and 50 which meshrespective-ly with a pair of gears 52 and 54. Gear 52 is mounted on andkeyed to a hollow shaft 56 which is provided with a fixed bearing 58 andprojects to the left through (see Figure 4) a central opening in astationary plate G and is supported by a ball bearing unit 62. Theleft-hand end of shaft 5@ carries a rotating needle drum E4 to be morefully described below. Projecting through shaft 55 is ahnllow shaft 66and a central stationary shaft 68, both of which project to the right(Figure 2) with shaft 55 having gear 54 keyed to it, and with' thestationary shaft 58 being secured to a bracket 1c.

Referring again to Figure 4 the. left-hand 61111,'-

of hollow shaft 66 carries a rotating lacing drum 'i2 and is supportedin shaft 56 by a sleeve bearing le while it has an internal sleevebearing 'i6 which assists in supporting the stationary shaft 68. Fixedto the left-hand end of shaft 68 is a stationary end plate 'E8 shaped asshown best in Figure 3 with a generally disk-like configuration, butwith a segment cut away at the bottom along a chordal line 8i) whichcurves at its ends to the arcuate periphery of the plate.

A's-slown best in Figure 1 the stationary plate E0 is Vmounted on abracket d2 and acts as a .frame portion upon which are mounted thevarious elements including eleven rollers Se (see also Figures 3 and e);three oi these rollers are mounted directly by a similar number cf studbolts clamped to the plate by nuts and each bolt has a cam or ofi-centershank i (see 1Figure 8) for its roller so that the position of theroller is adjusted by rotation of its boltrii. This adjustment is madeby inserting a screw driver in the slot 8l (see Figure 2) in the end ofthe bolt SB and then tightening the nut SS.

Bolts vli also provide a mounting for segments of a rim or ring St whichare a stationary top segment 88 shown at the upper right in Figure 3,and a swinging segment Sii-shown at the left thereof and hinged theretoby a bolt 55. rEhe swingable rim segment se carries-one of the rollers85 which lis identical with the other rollers de and is mountedsimilarly by a stud bolt et. Rim es also includes a stationary segment92 which extends approximately 18() degrees around drum 'l2 and isadjustably mounted by a pair of brackets si (see also Figure 12).Brackets 9i are heldby stud bolts 93 which'are rotatably clampedin theperiphery of plate t@ and are turned to adjust the segment 92.

The rotating needle drum 6ft has a rim Si? whichhasa helical groove itswhich provides a helical recessfor needle E@ (Figure 18), and'extendsfrom theright-hand (Figure 4) side of rim S8 which is adjacent thestationary plate Se in a munten-clockwise direction (when viewed fromthe left-hand side of the rim) and terminates at the left-hand edge(Figure 4) of the rim. Needle 2c is rectangular in cross section andextends substantially 540 arcuately, i. e. one and one-half turns,around the rim, and operation the needle is positioned within groovel0!! except at the work zone where the needle passes through the recess.The needle is held in the groove by the rollers 8c which bear on theouter surface of the needle. The rotating lacing drum 'l2 is positionedadjacent needle drum E54 with the adjacent peripheral edges of the twodrums in exact alignment. Theirim assembly formed by segments 88, 96 and92 are positioned in spaced relationship with respect to the surface oflacing drum 'l2 so as to provide an annular groove IM or slot around thesurface 62 of this drum which accommodates only a single layer of thelacing 3c. Thus (see also Figure 18) with the needle terminating on drumestat the edge thereof which is adjacent drum 'l2 the helical turns ofthe lacing extend over onto drum T2 and lay side-by-side in a singlelayer on this surface 4t2.

Surface l2 is tapered at an angle of four degrees with respect to theaxis of the drum with the diameter being lesser at the left, and the-mating surfaces of the rim are correspondingly tapered so that slot HMis of constant thickness. The arcuate periphery of the stationary plate'.78 3.5111 alignment with the left-hand edge of surface 5 |02 with theresult that the annular slot |04 is exposed at its left-hand edge.

Needle 20 is vprojected from the groove |00 throughout the Work zonewhere it extends through the work piece and, as shown in Figure 8, theneedle is guided through this zone partially by the work piece itself.However (see Figure 7), above the work piece there are bottom and topguide plates |05 and |06 which are clamped to the periphery of plate 60and which projects to the left. Plate |05 extends beyond the work zoneso that it is beneath the needle and the lacing loops and plate |06extends only over rim 98. A similar set of guide plates |01 and |08 issimilarly positioned beneath the level of the work zone and acts in thatway. Clamped together with guides |06 and |08 are two s-pring guides |26and |28 which have end shoes which are resiliently held against theturns of the lacing and tend to hold the lacing in place.

Positioned directly below plate |06 is a worm shaft which is rotatablymounted in a bearing ||2 and is ada-pted to be rotated by a gear |4keyed to the shaft. The left-hand end 4of this shaft carries a helicalwlorm ||6 which is of such a pitch thatit provides a groove positionedin alignment with each passing portion of the needle. At the bottomthere is a similar worm shaft I8 mounted in a bearing |20 and driven bya gear |22; shaft ||8 has a similar worm |24 which also has segments ofits groove so aligned that the passing portions of the needle passthrough them. These shafts llt and H8 are rotated synchronously with themovement of the needle so that the turns of the needle are guidedwithout interference. As shown in Figures l, 2 and '1, gears ||4 and |22are driven through gears and ||1 from a gear H9 keyed to shaft 56.

The above described arrangement tends to feed the work piece past thework zone and during each rotation of the needle its leading needle end22 is pushed from the groove |00 into proper alignment with the space|2| between guide plates |05 and |06 above the work piece. This movementof the needle is imparted (see Figures 5, 6 and 10) by a pin |30 whichis sldably mounted in a block |32 on the inside rim 98 (see also Figure5). Pin |30 has its end fixed to a cam plate |34, which rests on a stopblock |40 and is mounted on a spring |36, the end of which is clamped t0block |32 by a screw |38. Fixed to the -adjacent surface of thestationary plate 60 is a cam block |4| which is so positioned that it isengaged by plate |34 each time that the rotating drum approaches theposition where the end of the needle is to be pushed out of groove |00.Then as cam plate |34 rides over block 4| the cam plate |34 is swung tothe right (Figure 5) so as to slide pin |30 to the right. This pushesthe top of the needle from groove |00 so that it passes through slot |2|and pierces the workpiece at the proper point.

In accordance with the present invention, needle 20 is driven (seeFigures 4, 5 and 6) with a positive movement by two driving arms |42 and|44 which are mounted on drum 64 by pivot |46 and |48, respectively.These arms are urged clockwise individually by springs |50 and |52 eachconnected at one end to its driving arm and at the other end to plate64. Each of these driving arms has a needle-engaging portion (see alsoFigures 14 and 15) which comprises a thin rectangular dog or nose |54which projects through a slot |56 in rim 98 and thence into a slot |58in the needle. Nose |54 has a tapered lip |60 on its leading edge whichoverhangs and mates with a needle surface of the end of slot |58, thusto provide a driving contact between the nose portion of the driving armand the needle which tends to hold the needle in the slot as it drives.Slot |56 is wider than nose |54 so as to permit the nose to move throughthe slot and thence edgewise to the position shown.

Referring again to Figures 5 and 6, the driving arms |42 and |44 havetheir driving engagements with the needle spaced one-hundred eightydegrees apart and as the Zone of one of these engagements with theneedle approaches the work zone, the respective nose |54 is withdrawnfrom the engagement with the needle and this permits the needle to movefrom its slot |00. This withdrawing of the noses is effected by a xedcam |62 on plate 60 which has a rise |64. Cam |62 is positioned betweenthe cam arms of the driving arms |42 and |44, and the rise on the cam isso positioned that each arm is rocked to the disengaging position as itsneedle-engaging end approaches the Work zone. As indicated above, thisrocks the respective driving arm so as to disengage it from the needle.Upon iurther rotation the driving arm passes the rise on the cam andreturns to the full line position into driving engagement with theneedle. Thus, the driving arms are disengaged alternately but there is aconstant drive on the needle.

During operation, a loop of the lacing 30 is slipped out of slot |04during each rotation of .the needle and this loop is reduced in diameteras explained above so as to form the loop or lacing between two adjacentholes in the work piece. The releasing of these loops from the drum iscontrolled accurately by a strip-per arrangement now to be described.Referring to the lower portion of Figure 3, this stripper arrangementcomprises a sliding shuttle assembly |54 which is mounted on the rimsegment 92 and, equi-distant from the assembly |64, two identicalresilient holders |66 also mounted on the rim segment 02. Assembly |64includes a shell bracket |69 clamped to rim segment 92 by a plurality ofscrews |10. Referring to Figure 13, bracket |68 has a longitudinal bore|12 which is square in cross-section and in alignment with the bore andat the bottom there is an internally threaded sleeve extension |14.tension |14 is an adjusting sleeve |16 which is held in adjustedposition by a lock nut |18.

Projecting up through sleeve |16 is a threaded bolt having a nut |82thereon, and attached at its upper end to a tension spring |94. Theupper end of spring |84 is positioned in a cylindrical pocket or recess|86 in the bottom of a shuttle slide |88. Slide |88 has its upper endreduced to form the central knuckle 'of a hinge connection by which itis attached to a rockable shuttle slide |90. The lower end of slide |99is bifurcated .to form the outer knuckles of the hinge, and a pin |92holds the slides together. Slide carries a flat roller 94 upon a pivotpin |96, and a leaf spring |98 held by screws to bracket |68 pressesagainst this slide so that the face of roller |94 is held against theface of the lacing drum 12.

Slide |90 is cut away to provide space for roller |94 and beneath theroller there is a ledge |99 which is in alignment with the adjacent edgeof the rim portion 90. Ledge |99 forms with roller |94 a lacing pocket200 which is in alignment with slot |04 and is adapted to receive asingle turn of the lacing from this slot. Thus, during operationThreaded into sleeve exm broken lines.

; Yand in proper :timed relationship, a turn of the lacing moves intopocket /Ztll and is therefore free of slot Iilfl at that point. Theshuttle slide formed by slides itil la@ are resiliently held by springille in the position shown in full lines,

but they may be slid upwardly within bore H2 against the tension oi thisspring.y rIhus, with a turn of the lacing positioned in pocket 230,increased tension on the lacing causes the shuttle slide to moveupwardly. During this movement the upper slide 19t moves upwardly withrespect to and out from under the leaf spring ld which urges this slideto the right, and slide i9@ also emerges from bore H2 and therefore itrocks on the hinge pin E92 toward the position shown in This rockingmovement tips pocket VZi so that the lacing slides from the pocket andis therefore free. During its initial sliding movement upwardly theright-hand surface of slide IQ@ moves over the open edge of slot iiillso as to prevent additional turns :from passing from the slot and laterthe lower slide it performs the same function. Thus, only one turn ispermitted to escape from slot iii@ at a time and then only when thetension on the lacing ci that turn is sufficient to overcome .thetension of spring |85.

The resilient holders itil are somewhat similar in function to assemblyitil, although they diier in structure. v Referring to Figure 1l whereinone of the holders it@ is shown, there is a bracket 232 which is clampedto the rim portion 92 and which has a central channel 2t@- ofrectangular crosssection. Positioned within channel is a hold- 1 ing barwhich has a slot forming a lacing pocket 2% which is in alignment withslot di between the rim and the lacing drum Holding bar 2te has a guidehole in which is received the guide end portion E i 2 oi a set screw Qle which is threadaoly received in an openingin bracket 2l2 and is heldin adjusted positioning by a lock nut Surrounding the guide end portionof set screw Zit a compression spring M8 which rests at one end on aledge von the set screw and at the other end against the left-handsurface of bar 2%. Thus, the bar is urged to the full line position byspring Elli but it may slide and rock toward the left, to the brokenline position against the action of this spring.

Thus, during operation the outer 4turn of the lacing may enter pocket2&8 of each of the assemblies iil, the same as it enters pocket 2oz inassembly les. Then when the tension on the lacing in the pocket 2cdbecomes suiiiciently great to overcome ythe force of spring 2id, bar 206is moved outwardly to the broken line position and the lacing turn slipsfrom the pocket. Referring to Figure 3. the arrangement is such that thelacing turn is rst released by assembly I @Il and it is `then releasedby the assembly E65 at the right after which it is released by theassembly l5@ at the left. The lacing loop then is free and it is reducedand tightened as explained above.

During operation th-e loops in slot it tend to move toward the open endof the slot, and this action is aided by the rapid rotation of thelacing drum and the tapered surface lil?. Under some circumstances anair jet may be used to promote this movement of the loops to the left.

What we claim as new is:

1. In apparatus of the class described ior iorming a lacing or the likeinto loops on a work piece,

the combination of, a needle which extends arcuately vand is adapted topass through the work piece with the lacing or the like attached to itstrailing end, a needle drum means by which said needle is carried andVwhich is adapted to impart positive movement to the needle, drum meanshaving a leading edge portion disposed adjacent the trailing end of saidneedle and a trailing edge portion at the opposite end thereof and acylinder-like lacing supporting surface portion between said endportions upon which the lacing is wound and then rotates with theneedle, and loop stripping means adjacent said trailing edge portion tostrip an individual turn of the lacing from said drum means.

2. Apparatus as described in cla-iin l wherein said needle extendsarcuately substantially7 more than three-hundred sixty degrees wherebythe leading point of the needle passes through the work piece prior tothe passing of the trailing end of the needle from the next precedinghole in the work piece, and means to divert the needle from said needledrum means through the work zone where the needle passes through thework piece.

3. Apparatus as described in claim 2 the last named means comprises, apushing assembly mounted on the needle drum means and adapted to pushthe needle outwardly from the drum means, and a shield assembly formingan arcuate passageway which projects toward the work zone fromsubstantially the zone where the needle is pushed from the drum means.

Li. Apparatus as described in claim B'which includes, a rotating guidemember adjacent the work zone and presenting a spiral groove which is atall times in alignment with the needle as the needle passes toward thework piece.

5. Apparatus as described in claim 4 which includes, shield meansandrotary guide means for the needle as the needle passes from the Workpiece, and wherein said needle drum means comprises a cylindrical drumhaving a spiral recess in its periphery into which said needle isadapted to rest, and a plurality of rollers spaced around said peripheryand urging said needle into the space donned by said spiral groove.

6. Apparatus as described in clai .i 5 wherein said needle drum meansincludes, a pair of needle driving arms having noses which releasablyengage the needle to impart positive rotation thereto and wherein saidnoses are individually disconnected from the needle.

7. Apparatus as described in claim S wherein each of said needle drivingarms comprises a pivoted lever having one end resting upon a stationarycam surface and having its nose projecting from its other end, andwherein said needle has a slot into which each of said noses projects.

8. Apparatus as described in claim 7 wherein each of said noses has anundercut-engaging surface which extends forwardly and outwardly withrespect to the direction of movement of the needle.

9. Apparatus as described in claim 1 wherein the means to strip anindividual turn includes a plurality of releasing assemblies spacedradially from each other and adapted to receive one turn of the lacingor the like at a time and tc release it automatically.

l0. Apparatus as described in claim 9 wherein one of said releasingassemblies comprises a sliding shuttle having a pocket in alignment withthe periphery of the lacing drum means, and spring means normallyholding said sliding shuttle in the position named and adapted to movefrom said position and to release the lacing or the like upon thecreation of predetermined tension.

11. Apparatus as described in claim 10 wherein said pocket is formed bya ledge deiined by a porwherein tion of said shuttle and a rollermounted upon said shuttle adjacent said ledge and adapted to ride uponthe lacing.

12. Apparatus as described in claim 11 wherein said lacing drum means istapered with a reduced diameter at its edge remote from the needle drummeans.

13. Apparatus as described in claim 12 which includes a stationary rimsurrounding said lacing drum means and forming an annular slot therewithwhich is of such a thickness that it receives a single layer of thelacing or the like.

14. Apparatus as described in claim 13 wherein said needle drum meansand said lacing drum means are individually driven with the lacing drummeans being rotated at a greater speed.

15. Apparatus as described in claim 14 which includes a sword-1ike guidemember positioned adjacent the work piece and adapted to have the lacingor the like bind it and the work piece, and means associated with saidmember operative to withdraw it from its position adjacent the workpiece.

16. Apparatus as described in claim 14 wherein said lacing drum meanspresents a surface which tapers at an angle of substantially fourdegrees to the axis, and wherein the lacing drum means rotates at aspeed approximately thirty per cent greater than said needle drum means.

17. A lacing machine having a helically congured needle movable about anaxis of rotation, a Work table substantially parallel to said axis andhaving an edge portion adjacent the path followed by said needle duringrotation, and needle guide means adjacent said needle and said edgeportion; said guide means defining guide surfaces cooperating with theportion of said needle at any time adjacent said edge portion andmovable therewith and with respect to said edge portion.

18. A lacing machine including a power driven needle drum, an elongatedarcuate needle encompassing said drum in driving relationship therewith,and needle-engaging means mounted adjacent said drum and operable uponsaid needle to deiiect the needle away from the drum.

JAMESl C. MACY. JAMES J. KUSIV.

References Cited in the le of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS NumberName Date 294,627 Hunt Mar. 4, 1884 399,744 Dawson Mar. 19, 1889 445,316Hathaway Jan. 27, 1891 1,002,560 Browning Sept. 5, 1911

